Venice gang members arrested in narcotics bust

VENICE — Members of two Venice street gangs suspected of cocaine trafficking were arrested today by federal agents.

Prosecutors allege that members of the Venice Shoreline Crips and Venice-13 gangs are among the top suppliers of crack to users on the Westside of Los Angeles.

According to federal indictments unsealed Thursday, nine members of the Shoreline Crips and one member of Venice-13 are charged in U.S. District Court with conspiracy to distribute crack, among other crimes.

Ten other alleged gang associates, including juveniles, are named in state charges filed in Superior Court in Los Angeles for their apparent role in the drug ring, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

The joint federal and city investigation was launched last year to crack down on drug and gang crime in Santa Monica, Venice, Culver City and Inglewood, prosecutors said.

Arrests were made South and West Los Angeles, as well as Santa Monica and Inglewood, authorities said.

Those named in the federal indictments include:

• Stefan Denser, 42, of Los Angeles

• Dewayne Donelson, 55, of Los Angeles

• Christopher Featherstone, 52, of Inglewood

• Geronimo Hernandez, 24, of Los Angeles

• Johnny Hunter, 47, previously in custody

• Javier Ramon Cardenas-Perez, 26, previously in custody

• Torrey Rodriguez, 37, of Santa Monica

• Amey Storm, 47, of Santa Monica

• Damon Williams of Culver City, no age given, previously in custody.

All federal defendants were expected to face a U.S. Magistrate Judge Thursday afternoon in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles for detention hearings.

If convicted of the charges, most of the defendants, many of whom have extensive criminal histories, face maximum sentences of life imprisonment. Storm and Cardenas face maximum statutory sentences of 40 years in federal prison, authorities said.